I The Entrepreneur

Mr. Cecilio Kwok Pedro

Mr. Cecilio Kwok Pedro is the CEO and President of Lamoiyan Corporation which is popularly known as makers of the first Filipino toothpaste brand, Hapee toothpaste. He is born of Filipino-Chinese descent and he is a Business Management graduate of the Ateneo de Manila University and has received numerous awards and citations, including one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men award for business entrepreneurship. He began his life in the business industry as the owner of Aluminum Containers, Inc which was the major supplier of aluminum collapsible toothpaste tubes of multinational consumer goods giants Colgate-Palmolive and Philippine Refining Company - now Unilever Philippines. But when a major shift occurred in the toothpaste segment both these companies junked their aluminum packaging for plastic laminated tubes. This caused the close down of Aluminum Containers, Inc. But Mr. Pedro didn¶t give up. He used his existing facilities and a lot of adamant determination and hard work and founded Lamoiyan Corporation. Mr. Cecilio K. Pedro is also a longtime Christian and for all the logic and deliberation that went into building Lamoiyan, Pedro acknowledges a very important factor to his success: faith. Apart from his strong spirituality, Pedro has also won the admiration for his work in helping people with disabilities, particularly the hearing-impaired. As chairman of the Deaf Evangelistic Alliance Foundation, Inc., he has helped in bringing free education to hundreds of dead-mute Filipinos, some of whom are also employed at Lamoiyan. For Pedro, success really boils down to grabbing opportunities, both in terms of making profits and helping others.

However. Pedro's strategy was to target the multi-nationals' achilles' heel: price.II The Enterprise
Mission and Vision Lamoiyan Corporation¶s vision is to have a Lamoiyan product in every home.
History In the late 1970s. but by that time. Dr. when Colgate followed suit with a 20% price cut. these companies began using plastic laminated tubes. Inc. While Dr. Two years later. It took Colgate three years to respond. Pedro¶s Aluminum Containers. The first step of Dr. Although this caused Dr. Aluminum Containers. Pedro entered the market in 1988. he developed multi-flavored toothpaste for children. Dr. stood as the major supplier of aluminum collapsible toothpaste tubes to Colgate-Palmolive. Pedro knew that he could not compete in areas such as promotion and distribution. Today. and their mission is to improve the quality of life by bringing essential products within the reach of the common people. that figure has dropped down to 65%. Among other things. enjoyed profit growth due to the increasing demand from the country¶s leading toothpaste manufacturers. he realized his old equipment could still be put to good use by forging into the Philippines toothpaste market on his own. the big toothpaste makers controlled 99% of the market. his decision to cut price by 50% won an immediate response from consumers. Inc. Procter and Gamble and Philippine Refining Company (PRC) now Unilever. Pedro turned to market diversification. he reopened his factory as Lamoiyan Corporation. Lamoiyan had already successfully captured the new market. However. Pedro to close his factory.
Growth When Dr.
. in 1985. now known as the manufacturer of toothpaste brands¶ Hapee and Kutitap.

and Indonesia. a special gum-formula toothpaste . Lamoiyan grew by 12% and the company hopes to repeat this record this year. and we hope to do this within the year.
Expansion With this drive and faith. Pedro has chosen to use his entrepreneurial skills to help provide opportunities to others.000 tons which equates to approximately 1. Lamoiyan has earmarked P100 million to expand its business and establish presence in neighboring countries such as China. Pedro has no plans of slowing down. Lamoiyan Corporation has been recognized as the Most Outstanding Toothpaste Manufacturer by the Consumer's Union of the Philippines for seven years. and by selling his product at a price 30% lower than the leading brands. initially in Vietnam. and later on become the preferred brand in Asia. Pedro succeeded in making Hapee the No. Fresher feminine wash and Gumtect. Pedro stated that the fresh capital would be used to acquire additional machinery that would double the firm's toothpaste production capacity to 6. Dr. Dr. Dazz Dishwashing Paste and Dazz All-Purpose Kitchen Cleaner. 3 toothpaste brand in the country. which larger companies did not find profitable. Dr. Dr.5 Billion Pesos in total revenue. In November of 2004.
Social Responsibility While enjoying the success of being the first Filipino to ever penetrate the toothpaste market that has been dominated by multinational companies. Pedro targeted specialized markets.With perseverance and effective advertising. In 2003. In addition." he said. Pedro said the company's expansion plans were meant to support its bid to become a transnational company." He added that the increase in the capacity of Lamoiyan's Bicutan factory meant doubling its 60-person workforce. a third of which are hearing-impaired. The company was also recognized by the Personnel Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP) as having the Most Outstanding Program for Equal Employment. "We are working to establish overseas operations. Dr. Dr. A staunch advocate of the hearing
. Vietnam. by diversifying his product line to include Hapee Kiddie Toothgels. "We want to be the Colgate of Asia and we can only do this by getting bigger.

Their singular corporate motto is ³Making the difference for the Glory of God.A. it really just depends on how one chooses to view the situation. You provide a decent place where they can work safely. ³My primary intention is to encourage more businessmen to be socially responsible²to help people and to give back to the community. especially those peddled to mass consumers.´
III The Entrepreneurial Opportunity
Mr. But products. (DEAF).´ Of these three aspects. but also taking care of your people. are constantly in a state of evolution. Dr. and helps provide them with free housing.now Unilever Philippines. Pedro has also required his managers to learn sign language. Inc. To narrow the communication gap between his hearing-impaired and hearing personnel.F. And in 1985. and spiritual well-being. Pedro helps provide free college education to at least 180 deaf-mute students through the Deaf Evangelistic Alliance Foundation.´ he shares.
. Pedro also employs over 30 deaf-mute staff in his company. ³I also believe in taking care of my employees¶ physical. Dr. He was recognized by the Department of Education.impaired. Dr. Cecilio Pedro. intellectual. ± was raking in as the major supplier of aluminum collapsible toothpaste tubes to multinational consumer goods giants Colgate-Palmolive and Philippine Refining Company .´ he adds. Dr. Inc. Pedro puts a premium on creating means by which his people can grow spiritually.E. For 8 years since 1977. His company holds regular Bible studies and prayer meetings to help make food for the soul. which he currently chairs. his former company ± Aluminum Containers. chief executive and president of Lamoiyan Corporation believes that periods of crisis also provide numerous opportunities. providing education to the hearing-impaired in alleviating their conditions and providing them with adequate education. Culture and Sports for the continuing efforts of D. one of these major shifts occurred in the toothpaste segment when both companies junked their aluminum packaging for plastic laminated tubes and almost in an instant. ³Being socially responsible is not only taking care of the hearing impaired. Aluminum Containers¶reason for being ceased.

To sell Hapee against well-entrenched foreign brands like Colgate-so strong a brand name that many Filipinos at the time used it almost generically to refer to all kinds of toothpaste ± Pedro had to come up with an effective marketing strategy to attract consumers by first pricing his product at around 30 percent lower than the leading brands and by coming up with an effective advertising campaign that had strong recall. a special gum-formula toothpaste. The whole process took two years. He wanted to use local flavors.´ Pedro recalls. which could still be utilized somehow. he knew he had to find a source or a supplier that could help him with the technical expertise of producing toothpaste. Fash liquid detergent. ³I was forced to create my own brand locally. Tenderly fabric enhancer. when Dr. ³I had to find a business that would make use of my existing facilities. The knowledge may have come from Japan. he still had the equipment. this proved to be easier said than done. the big toothpaste makers controlled 99% of the market.´ he says. that figure has dropped down to 65%. and in 1987 he opened Lamoiyan. The result? Lamoiyan now has the No.´ he admits. After all. but then today. but found the royalties to be too expensive. Cecilio K. my capital was very small. which now includes Dazz dishwashing paste and liquids. ³Initially. He found one through a friend: a company that was making toothpaste for hotels in Japan who agreed to assist him with the technical know-how. this decision of
. 3 toothpaste brand in the Philippines. and Gumtect. Still. This came about when Mr. and he and his team researched and tested close to 200 formulations until they found what they thought to be the most ideal. Pedro thought of forming joint ventures with other companies from abroad.
IV The Enterprise¶s Target Market As it was already discussed in Chapter 2. Most importantly. and you need a lot of resources to compete.But Pedro wasn¶t about to give up. but Pedro wanted a product that was unmistakably Filipino. Pedro entered the market in 1988. better known in the market as the makers of Hapee toothpaste. Pedro cut price by 50% and won an immediate response from consumers. the confidence gained by the company from this initial success has allowed Lamoiyan to diversify its product line. But aside from competition purposes. To accomplish this. Lamoiyan is 100% Filipino-owned company. The most logical option he thought was to make his own toothpaste.

Pedro targeted specialized markets. he developed multi-flavored toothpaste for children. (2) Choosing people who will work for us and with us should be done carefully. With perseverance and effective advertising. When Colgate followed suit with a 20% price cut. Lamoiyan Corporation¶s Hapee toothpaste success story is a story that every aspiring entrepreneur should hear.cutting price was also to achieve Lamoiyan Corporation¶s mission and vision which are primarily directed toward the common Filipino people. by diversifying his product line to include Hapee Kiddie Toothgels. perseverance. Dazz Dishwashing Paste and Dazz All-Purpose Kitchen Cleaner. (3) There will be certain stages in our business that competition will be fierce. We are grateful to discover the following lessons: (1) Success really boils down to grabbing opportunities. Fresher feminine wash and Gumtect. (4) We should start small but we should always think big. thus we need to consider global penetration. both in terms of making profits and helping others. and by selling his product at a price 30% lower than the leading brands. Cecilio Kwok Pedro¶s hardwork.
. a special gum-formula toothpaste . By this we have identified that the corporation¶s primary target market ranged within the middle classed group and the lesser fortunate Filipinos of the country. Among other things. thus it is necessary for us to have faith and believe that we can carry through. Pedro succeeded in making Hapee the No. Dr. Dr. but by that time. It took Colgate three years to respond.
V The Entrepreneurial Lessons Mr. which larger companies did not find profitable. Dr. (5) And lastly. 3 toothpaste brand in the country. Lamoiyan had already successfully captured the new market. we can always make our own brand!. and incredible faith have truly inspired us. In addition. Pedro turned to market diversification.